Uganda rebels in new peace move

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The Ugandan government and Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebels have signed a new deal in the latest round of talks to end their 20-year conflict.

The talks are on how to manage the subject of war crimes, and are the latest stage in what is intended to be a five-part peace process.

Under the deal, both sides agreed to support the use of Ugandan justice to address human rights abuses.

The LRA is blamed for killing tens of thousands of people.

Mediators have said the talks, held in southern Sudan, are a key stage in the process to end the civil war.

The talks follow a previous agreement in May on dealing with political and economic issues.

Joseph Kony leads the LRA, which is accused of human rights abuses"We signed the agreement on reconciliation and accountability late last night, which moves us one step closer to a final peace agreement," Martin Ojul, head of the LRA delegation in Sudan, was quoted as saying by news agency Reuters.

Rebels say using Ugandan courts would be more appropriate than sending suspected war criminals to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague in the Netherlands.

The ICC has already issued arrest warrants against four rebel leaders, among them the group's leader, Joseph Kony - a move which has led those leaders to stay away from the talks.

More than a million people have been displaced in the conflict, which has been waged across much of northern Uganda. Most are housed in refugee camps.